My fundraiser is up to $1500 for the women's shelter now. So that's $3000 with my employer matching the total donated.

well done TL,

welcome back AA.

Yes, good stuff, TL!

How are you doing Vet? I just want you to know that I am going to dedicate the funds raised to the memory of Grace. I had planned to dedicate it to the memory of a friend but her body has never been found and I find I can't let go of the hope that she might come home one day.

How are you today Vet? Hope all is well and you are still with us sober folks.

Thanks Brain. Met with our financial advisor this morning. If that won't drive me to drink, nothing can. Working from home today in the office in our finished basement. I've been really busy. The guys over my head are tearing out the old kitchen and putting in a new one. An electric hammer firing off can really mess up your concentration. Other than that, I'm doing fine. Thanks for checking in.

What a
Kind and gracious thing for you to do Tiger Lili. I'm sorr6for the loss of your friend. The terrible thing about losing someone in the way you described is the lack of closure. I wish you peace.

Damn, y'all. Reality is truly stranger than fiction. Missing persons, murder... Today we had the funeral for a 23 year old whose 5 year old son found her the other day dead with a needle in her arm. This makes 15 people who have died from heroin overdose since I got sober, and 24 since January, 2013, in a town of only 7000 (or maybe 6976). Unbelievable. My doctor actually joked that the little bottle of oxy I have leftover from surgery is worth a few hundred dollars on the street. It would be funny if not so twisted. Part of what happened here is doctors were too loose with painkillers, then the cops got on their case about it so they tightened their grip, and now the oxy junkies have turned to heroin. At least a dozen of the recent deaths were oxy mixed with heroin. Doesn't that sound like a good time? It's to the point where locals just shrug their shoulders. Last year 40 or so people were arrested for trafficking Schedule I drugs (heroin, meth, coke...) in a huge sting and due to complete ***** Barney Fife ineptitude they got not a single conviction. They all walked. Stranger than fiction.

I hope y'all are getting through sober and sane. I'm feeling a little bitter at the moment, but I'll meditate in a bit and chill. I knew the gal who died but hadn't seen her in years. I'm guessing she moved and then returned. She died in her mom's house. Poor kid. Five years old alone in the house with a dead mom. That will not be easy to shake. And to think there was a time when one of my best friends was a junkie and heroin dealer. I remember him telling me once that he felt bad for selling it, but he needed to support his own habit. He wanted to quit but you know how that goes. This was in the late 1980's. I saw him at a concert a couple of summers ago with pencil point pupils - still a junkie - miraculously breathing. Smart guy. Genius, really. But never could deal with emotion. Comfortably numb...

I'm sorry for your loss Zero.

D

Thanks, Dee. I'm headed to a music festival tomorrow. 200 bands. Yow. I'm gonna blow this town and celebrate. Clean and sober, of course. Ciao.

Some sad stories this week but life does go on.

Enjoy the music Zero.

Boy. What a thoughtful, empathetic, engaged group. Lots of stories here. Lucky to be part of it.

Some will say there is an opioid epidemic in America and obviously the heroin is much cheaper than the oxy so those with the predisposition have little barriers towards turning to street drugs.

There is certainly an epidemic here in the th Northern VA DC area. Deaths every week. Lots of kids. Sad.Have a good day everyone.

There are certainly peaks and troughs in life. It's easy to forget about the hard times when it's smooth sailing, but I think the hard times are worth as much care and attention as the good times. Maybe even a bit more :-)

We have had torrential rain this week! They called it a "super storm". I managed to get to work on Tuesday but by Tuesday afternoon the govt was suggesting people leave work and go home before dark. On Wednesday we were asked to avoid non-essential travel and to consider not going to work. I stayed home and got my book orders ready. We're pushing $2,000 now. A lot of people have made small donations on top of the purchases or instead of purchases which has helped boost our tally. I'll be heading to the post office tomorrow and hopefully by Sunday everything will paid for, shipped and picked up and on Monday I can make the deposit to the shelter organisation. It's a state-wide 24/7 service for anyone at risk of violence.

My weekend starts now as it's Thursday here and I am off work tomorrow. I have intermittent internet issues still, and the mobile phone tower in my hood is also out from time to time. Oh, technology. How you taunt us!

That's very cool TL - 2 house payments... :)

Yeah, the opioid/heroin thing here in the usofa... sad really. I recall when my wife discarded around 30 oxys I had left... I was like, "You just threw away a few hundred dollars worth of..." yard sale I was thinking... :lmao

glad all are in better spirits. Life happens and we learn to deal with it. Good or bad, alcohol is never part of the plan.

I noticed your ANZAC remembrance Dee... Similar to our veterans day. Will do.

lol!

It's Friday here. It was at freezing this morning. Good thing I turned the heat back on yesterday.

we continue here:
http://www.soberrecovery.com/forums/...-part-8-a.html

D